I started woodworking about 38 years ago at the age of 14 - and did my apprenticeship the old fashioned way - Blood, Sweat and Tears - then some more blood - for 5 years. Stacking, re-stacking timber and making Tea & Coffee for the first 6 months – but as they say that is another story!

No work was available, unless you went into mass production (That is not wood working) – So joined the Army, and became an Aerospace and Communications engineer.

I stopped all that Hi-stress work and travelling about 3 years ago (2005), fell in love, moved to Finland and sort of retired (unemployed).

I decided to start making some small bits and pieces of furniture for the house and found that I had not lost the touch and as they say the rest is history.

I now have commissions coming in very slowly, but they are coming in, it all takes time – and I have a lot of time, with NO stress – This is the best part of my life – No money, but ever so happy.

*UPDATE 04-08-2010: The workshop is now closed. I have moved to Belgium to restore our new house and to build a NEW workshop there. You can follow my progress on "HOME REFURBISHERS"*

I am updating the workshop again – I need more space, not just for my self, but I now have another person working with me.
This is what the workshop looked like at Christmas 2008.
I did some changes in March this year, like mov...

The frequency of which you maintain the work piece depends upon the usage, the type of wood and the type of finish used.
Regular dusting, preferably with a static duster or feather type cleaner. Using a normal cloth can scratch the finish.
...

Application of Wax on top of another medium.
Before we get too much into this part, there are a few things we have to consider about the wood we are using for our project, especially if we want a high shine on the project.
OPEN/CLOSE GRAINSo...

Wax and Oils are one of the oldest, if not the oldest form of protection for wood and wood products known to man – it has been used for millennia all over the world.
On the market today there are a multitude of products to choose from natural w...

I promised Blake that I would undertake a short series on Finishing techniques – primarily using Wax.
These three short blogs are the notes presented at a demonstration I gave last Friday evening. Sorry there are no photographs at the mo...